Comparison between Egyptian Pharaohs and democratic Presidents

The pinnacle of Egyptian society, a god in Earth - an incarnation of Horus the falcon god

A common citizen

Access to power

The ascent of the throne was the succession of the eldest son of a dead Pharaoh, Sometimes the heir's coronation as a co-regent prior to the father's death was performed

Universal elections

Duration of Rule

Lifetime

Limited by law and election mandate

Administrative power

Supreme Power, the Pharaoh himself was the figure upon whom the whole administrative structure of the state
rested. These god Pharaohs usually commanded tremendous resources, was the head of the civil administration and the supreme warlord

Distribution of power between different State institutions

Titles

The kings of Egypt were not called Pharaohs by the Egyptians.
The title of "Pharaoh" actually comes to us from the Greek language and its use in the Old Testament.
In Egypt a whole range of titles were used for a full statement of a Pharaoh's name and
title, these included: - The living Horus- Lord of the Two Lands- High Priest of every temple

Representative of the people

Responsibilities

The Pharaoh was subject to grave responsibilities,
he was tasked with keeping the order and defeat the enemies of the country.
making sufficient offerings and otherwise satisfying the gods so that they would bless Egypt with a bountiful Nile flood.
failure at these tasks meant a weakening of the state,
and in some cases, such as at the end of the Old Kingdom, this failure lead to a complete collapse of the country.

Responsible for state affairs according to mandate, but performance
constantly monitored by the people and State institutions

Judgment of Rule

Worshipped during his reign and after his death, never judged - few exceptions
occurred when dead Pharaohs were defamed by succeeding rival Pharaohs such as
Akhenaten and Hatshepsut

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Pharaohs wore and were buried with the religious Magical Amulets that protected them from evil powers

They also wore other regalia connected to their divine power and authority such as crowns, flails and crooks

It is noted that despite of widespread depiction in royal portraits, no ancient crown ever has been found,
Tutankhamen's tomb, discovered largely intact, did contain his crook and flail, but not a crown.

This official State item was not retained by dead pharaohs as personal possessions, and had to be passed along to a successor.

Crowns may have been temple property, after all the pharaoh was crowned by the High Priest

The Nemes Crown

More of a head-dress than a crown, the Nemes was the striped head cloth worn by pharaohs. It covered the whole crown and back of the head and nape of the neck

When a pharaoh was depicted as a sphinx, a Nemes always adorned the head of the sphinx, which suggests that this crown along with the false beard were inspired from the lion's mane

The Nemes was used almost exclusively in statuary and funerary representation representing the royal KaHowever paintings showing the pharaoh performing daily activities such as hunting or at war, never shown the king wearing the Nemes crown

This suggests that this crown was actually symbolic only, but were never actually worn